How to Handle Naps on Sundays
This post will not be relevant to everyone, but it will be exactly what you’re looking for if…
You go to church on Sunday morning, or would like to
Your baby is already a good sleeper on a set nap schedule.
If you have no semblance of a schedule for your baby, you are likely not stressing about this. By the way, if you’d like help with that, check out my coaching packages. I know you think that having baby on a schedule is limiting but it’[s actually the opposite! It’s freeing!
But I degress.
Back to my Sunday church-goers with babies on set nap schedules.
Here’s an example; my favorite 2-nap schedule for babies from 7ish-12ish months old is 9:30am and 2:00pm.
I remember when my twins were rocking that schedule for several months.
But what happens when church is at 9am? What about 10am? Let’s discuss…
First, we have to accept that we are going to be going OFF schedule on Sundays and we are going to be OKAY with that! The best part of having a good sleeper on a consistent schedule is that you can improvise once in a while. It’s about what you do most of the time. Getting a little off track one day out of every seven days is completely doable.
What I’m saying is, a little flexibility on occasion won’t ruin your child’s sleep. I know that’s what you’re worried about. When your little one is sleeping well there’s this feeling of not wanting to rock the boat. Especially if there was a time when they weren’t sleeping well, and you worked hard to get to where you’re at. I get it.
But you also need to live your life.
Scenario 1: Your baby naps at 9:30a.m. but church is at 10:00a.m.
You’ve probably noticed that the first wake window of the day is the shortest one. This is because baby’s have a lot of sleep pressure in the mornings after a long night of sleep. Sort of like a “sleep hangover”. It makes no sense but they’re actually sleepiest after sleeping all night.
Take advantage of that by putting them down for their nap 30 minutes early at 9:00a.m., then let them sleep for as long as they possibly can before you have to get them up and get out the door to make it to church on time.
This means the nap may only be 30ish minutes, where it’s usually a good hour and a half if not longer. Thats okay. Remember, it’s just one day out of seven. A thirty-minute nap is enough to take the edge off.
Whenever you have a short nap (intentionally or not), you fix it by pulling everything else earlier. That means that the 2:00p.m. nap just moved an hour earlier to 1:00p.m. Let this nap go as long as 2.5 hours if possible. That will get you to your usual bedtime!
But if baby only sleeps 90 minutes, for example, just pull bedtime a little earlier that night (about 30 minutes earlier). Baby still got two naps in; they just didn’t get quite as much daytime sleep as they’re used to. An earlier bedtime makes up for that.
Scenario 2: Your church service starts right around the same time as baby’s nap should start.
In this situation, you’re not going to have time to give them a cat nap at home. So, you can do a motion nap in the car instead! This will mean leaving earlier than you normally would and driving around for a bit.
If church is at 9:00a.m., get in the car at 8:15 and start driving. Maybe hit up a coffee drive-thru, listen to a podcast, go on a scenic drive. I know gas prices are expensive but again, this isn’t a daily occurrence. (If you’re relying on car naps on a daily basis, please reach out for help! They should be a tool, not an everyday necessity.)
Once baby has had a 30-minute snooze, you’re good to go! Pull on into church and wake them up! Car naps aren’t as restorative as crib naps, but we just need to get them through the service and back home. Then we can offer their next nap earlier than normal, just like in the other scenario.
Scenario 3: Your church service starts before baby’s nap and runs into nap time.
In this case, it’s okay to push their wake window a little bit!
Maybe church is at 8:30a.m. and ends at 9:30a.m. By the time you get home it will be close to 10:00 and now baby is late for their nap.
You have a few options here.
You could take that drive I mentioned in the above scenario to get them a motion nap on the way home and then make up for it with a good second nap later in the day.
Alternatively, and assuming you’re with other family members and the drive home isn’t too long, you could keep them awake for the car ride so that the motion doesn’t lull them to sleep. Then get them down for a nap in their crib as soon as you get home.
Overtiredness can lead to a crap nap but we’re not looking for perfection, even a short nap in their crib will be good enough. You always have nap #2 and an early bedtime to save the day.
Maybe this is just something my family did when we had places to be on Sundays, but you can always leave church a little early. You know, after the “meaty” parts are over (like the sermon or communion). Then you’re only off schedule by 15-20 minutes rather than 30-45.
I could do a dozen more scenarios but that isn’t the point, the point is flexibility.
This is your permission slip to get off schedule on Sunday. I don’t advise outright skipping a nap, at least not on purpose, but I do advise a “some is better than none” mentality. You can get right back on track the next day, and the day after that, and the day after that, until Sunday comes around again!
I believe that if you value good sleep then you need to prioritize baby’s naps and honor their schedule. Most of the time.
But I also believe that if church is important to you and your family, then you need to prioritize that above a perfect nap day.